Bridgestone WeatherPeak Review – an Excellent New All-Weather Tire

Thousands of tire buyers in North America bought all-season tires, expecting that they would work in the hottest summers and most severe winters. And why wouldn’t they – these tires have ‘all-season’ in the name, meaning they were designed to work throughout the year.

But once winter arrives, many people discover that all-season tires are not up to snuff. They suffer from traction on even lighter snow and won’t provide any meaningful grip on ice. As a result, we get many chain collisions every winter, particularly in places with harsh wintry conditions.

Naturally, you might think that the only remaining choice is to deal with the inconvenience of changing your all-season tires with winter tires before winter starts. However, there is another solution: all-weather tires.

These tires are similar to all-season tires, focusing more on snow and ice traction. They also come with the 3PMSF (Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake) symbol, meaning they were independently tested against a reference all-season tire for higher longitudinal snow traction (braking and acceleration).

All-weather tires have been on the market for around a decade, but it’s only recently that Bridgestone entered the touring category with an all-weather tire of its own – the WeatherPeak. This model is a sign of things to come from the Japanese tiremaker, and I am sure that soon, we will see the company launching all-weather tires for crossovers, SUVs, and trucks.

The Bridgestone WeatherPeak is late to the party, with companies like Michelin (CrossClimate 2), Goodyear (Assurance WeatherReady), and Vredestein (Quatrac Pro) already dominating the market and having thousands of happy owners. Pirelli also recently launched the Cinturato WeatherActive, and the General AltiMAX 365 AW has shown to be a formidable budget-oriented competitor.

So, Bridgestone’s brand-new all-weather tire will have quite a mountain to climb to lure customers. But the real question is – should you buy this tire? Will it satisfy your all-weather driving needs?

Well, buckle up because I will tell you everything there is to know about this tire in our in-depth Bridgestone WeatherPeak review. In this review, I will tell you how the Bridgestone WeatherPeak fares against its rivals so you can make a more informed choice. Let’s go!

Indeed, the WeatherPeak is a feature-packed tire with a cleverly designed tread pattern made from a sophisticated tread compound. Bridgestone’s approach was to push the all-weather category forward with even better snow/ice traction and longevity, as all-weather tires are naturally less durable than regular all-season tires because of the softer tread compound.

Bridgestone leveraged an advanced all-season compound molded into a symmetrical pattern to do that. Like most all-weather tires, the WeatherPeak also features numerous sipes, similar to what you’d find on winter tires.

However, on this tire, they evolve as it wears down, ensuring the driver will still get helpful traction on snow and ice. In addition, the sipes are 3D full-depth, contributing to snow traction, even when the tire wears down.

Furthermore, the WeatherPeak features an open shoulder slot design with generous lateral notches and four circumferential grooves with ridges, contributing to better water/slush evacuation and high-speed water flow. In addition, the snow vices provide that additional bite on snow, which is crucial for the tire’s winter capabilities.

As a result of this relatively aggressive tread pattern, the WeatherPeak got the 3PMSF certification. It is not very hard to get the 3PMSF symbol nowadays, as the tires are compared to a special ‘ASTM E1136-14’ reference tire and only for longitudinal traction, i.e., braking and acceleration. To pass the test, the WeatherPeak needed to offer 110% of the traction of the reference tire on snow.

So, the 3PMSF test is easy, meaning it won’t tell you much about how a tire performs in the real world. To give customers a clearer idea of the abilities of the tire, Bridgestone already compared the WeatherPeak to the Michelin CrossClimate 2, saying that it offers 5% better wet acceleration, 4% better dry acceleration, and stops 14 feet shorter on snow than in its internal tests.

But let’s move Bridgestone’s marketing speech to the side and continue with the Bridgestone WeatherPeak review to find out how this tire fares against its closest rivals!

But just like the 3PMSF rating, these indicators don’t offer much information. Sure, it is widely considered that a tire with less than 2/32 inches of tread depth will suffer from hydroplaning, but that is only the case on reference tires.

Besides, don’t forget that the WeatherPeak is an all-weather tire, meaning it was designed to work in more challenging winter conditions. And when it comes to snow and ice, 2/32 inches is not enough to give you good traction. In fact, you will have almost no traction at all, regardless of the tire.

The minimum legal depth for wintry conditions is 5/32 inches (4 mm). Annoyingly, the WeatherPeak only comes with wear bars that sit at 2/32 inches from the bottom, meaning the regular driver won’t have a way to know whether the tire is suitable for the upcoming winter or not.

For that reason, I would suggest purchasing a tread depth gauge. It is a relatively inexpensive tool (they go for less than $10 online), yet it can show you exactly how much tread depth you have left on your tires. You can also use the tread depth gauge on various grooves across the tire to see whether it wears unevenly, which can also lead to premature tire changes.

Or, ask a professional! Tire technicians will tell you whether your tires have enough ‘meat’ on them for the upcoming winter just from a visual inspection, and more often than not, they will use a gauge themselves!

But does that mean anything? Well, although it is relatively early to tell, owners are pretty satisfied with the real-world durability. On Tire Rack, for instance, the tire has an average rating of 8.4 for treadwear, according to Bridgestone WeatherPeak reviews from owners, which is very good for an all-weather tire.

Of course, more time needs to pass, as the WeatherPeak entered the market during the winter of 2021, meaning owners still haven’t covered a lot of miles.

Still, considering Bridgestone’s other offerings, like the super-durable Turanza QuietTrack, I have no doubts that the WeatherPeak is a long-lasting tire with an excellent treadlife.

Still, remember that this is an all-weather tire designed for regular drivers and not racers. In our review, I found that the Bridgestone WeatherPeak feels responsive enough, with well-weighted, precise steering. Also, I liked how much information I got from the front tires, considering the category. Sure, the experience wasn’t sporty, but I had no issues placing the car where I wanted when entering a corner, and I think that is crucial in this category.

Also, while the WeatherPeak can’t match the CrossClimate 2 in overall grip and traction, the difference isn’t too big. Bridgestone’s tire stops a little later and won’t achieve the same speeds in the corners, but you could never feel these things on public roads.

Crucially, in our review, we found that the Bridgestone WeatherPeak is a very secure tire with enough braking power and lateral grip to keep you safe on the road. In fact, it performs better on dry roads than most grand-touring tires on sale today, even including regular all-season models. It is just when you compare it to its rivals, like the Michelin CrossClimate 2 and Vredestein Quatrac Pro, that the WeatherPeak is at a slight disadvantage.

Also, do not forget that Bridgestone offers a longer 70,000-mile warranty on this tire, which could explain the slight traction disadvantage when compared to its rivals. Considering the long warranty duration, I reckon most drivers will be happy with the compromise.

Regarding what is essential in the grand-touring all-weather category, the WeatherPeak ticks all the boxes. It stops very strongly, with distances that rival the class-leading tires. Moreover, it offers good acceleration off the line and a high lateral grip that allows for some pretty fast driving when it rains.

The hydroplaning resistance also impressed me. All-weather tires are known to have good hydroplaning resistance, but the Bridgestone WeatherPeak was a stand-out in our review, as it cut through puddles of water with ease. As such, it is a very safe tire in rainy conditions, even at higher speeds on the highway.

Like on dry roads, though, the WeatherPeak suffers a bit when pushed hard in the rain. Namely, while the handling is balanced overall, in our Bridgestone WeatherPeak review, I found that the tire tends to lose traction abruptly when you go over the top. You will need to go really fast to get it to lose grip, but once it does, the WeatherPeak requires quick reflexes.

As such, Bridgestone’s first foray in the all-weather category does not want a spirited driver behind the wheel when it rains. But let’s be honest for a moment – zero owners of the WeatherPeak will ever push it past its limit when it rains. For most regular drivers, the WeatherPeak will be a stable, buttoned-down tire that performs excellently on wet tarmac.

But Bridgestone’s all-weather tire isn’t only impressive when you push the left (or middle) pedal. It also accelerates well off the line without too much wheel slip, even on vehicles with two driven wheels. The lateral grip is also among the highest in the all-weather category, allowing you to drive quickly without worrying about losing control.

Even if you lose control of your vehicle, the WeatherPeak will let you regain it quickly. Bridgestone did a great job with the handling – the WeatherPeak feels very agile yet buttoned down and stable on snow. Moreover, the tire gives you time to react when you hit the limit, which is very important when driving over snow.

But you will also encounter ice and slush during the winter, not just snow. In slush, the WeatherPeak provides excellent resistance to hydroplaning and feels secure, but it is only average on ice. Not many all-weather tires are usable on icy surfaces, but a notable example of a better-performing tire on ice is the Michelin CrossClimate 2.

Overall, though, our Bridgestone WeatherPeak review confirmed that it is currently one of the best snow tires in the all-weather category. Thus, this tire will be a perfect companion if you live in an area with intermediate winter conditions (light-to-medium snow and not much ice). Still, if you encounter roads covered in deep snow and ice, you will need a set of winter tires, which is valid for any other all-weather tire.

The slightly more aggressive tread pattern will give you traction on dirt and gravel, but the real issue here is durability. Namely, unlike off-road tires, the WeatherPeak isn’t protected against cuts and punctures and might be easily damaged by rocks.

Besides, you will have real issues with traction on some more demanding terrains, like mud or large rocks, and you might get stuck.

If you want a run-flat all-season tire from Bridgestone, the company offers the DriveGuard Plus. It is currently the most accomplished grand-touring all-season tire with run-flat capabilities, offering a smooth ride, good year-round traction, and long treadlife.

This is not something that is given in the all-weather category. Unlike regular all-season tires with a less aggressive tread pattern, the numerous sipes and grooves on all-weather tires create additional noise when driving, particularly on coarse roads.

Thus, manufacturers must optimize their tread patterns to introduce variable pitch sequencing and minimize noise by blending more frequencies.

Bridgestone did a great job with that, as the WeatherPeak is one of the quietest all-weather tires I have tested. This surprised me, as the classic symmetrical tread pattern with many blocks suggests that the WeatherPeak will be a noisy tire.

As for the ride, it is firm, like on most Bridgestone tires lately, but never harsh or offensive. In fact, the WeatherPeak has a better ride than many softer grand-touring tires, in our opinion, as the firmer nature ensures that the tire doesn’t produce secondary movements when it hits sharper impacts, leading to a more controlled ride.

With that said, you might also want to consider some of its competitors. For instance, the Michelin CrossClimate 2 provides better overall rain performance and similar snow traction, although it has a lower 60,000-mile warranty. Also, the Vredestein Quatrac Pro is outstanding traction-wise, regardless of the weather, but comes with a relatively short 50,000-mile warranty.

A less expensive alternative would be the General AltiMAX 365 AW. It comes with an excellent 60,000-mile warranty for the price, solid snow traction, and grippy dry handling, though it is a significant downgrade when it comes to wet traction and steering precision.

Lastly, the budget-friendly Toyo Celsius performs very well on dry and snow-covered roads, comes with a solid 60,000-mile warranty, and provides a smooth ride, though it suffers from traction in rainy conditions.